Courage to Resist. November 11, 2011
Courage to Resist, working on peace/anti-militarism issues and located in Oakland, California, has just been awarded $3,500 by RESIST, Inc., a national progressive foundation located in Somerville, Massachusetts.
Courage to Resist received funding to bring together community members, veterans and military families in support of GI resistance and counter-recruitment efforts. “We are very excited to have received this grant from RESIST,” noted Courage to Resist project director Jeff Paterson. “These types of grants make up less than 15% of our budget, yet are extremely important overall as we undertake very public campaigns–such as that of accused WikiLeaks whistle-blower US Army PFC Bradley Manning–and less splashy day-to-day activities like Individual Ready Reserve and Conscientious Objection-related assistance.”
RESIST began in 1967 in support of draft resistance and in opposition to the Vietnam War. As the funder of the first resort for hundreds of organizations, RESIST’s small but timely grants and loans are made to grassroots groups engaged in activist organizing and educational work for social change. RESIST defines organizing as collective action to challenge the status quo, demand changes in policy and practice, and educate communities about root causes and just solutions. RESIST recognizes that there are a variety of stages and strategies that lead to community organizing. Therefore, they support strategies that build community, encourage collaborations with other organizations, increase skills and/or access to resources, and produce leadership from the constituency being most directly affected. In fiscal year 2010, RESIST gave over $286,000 to 135 organizations across the country.
“Each year, RESIST funds groups like Courage to Resist, because our mission is to support people who take a stand about the issues that matter today, whether it’s to resist corporate globalization, promote a woman’s right to choose, or develop activist leaders,” says Board Chair Miabi Chatterji. “And we believe it’s especially important to help grassroots organizations that might be too small or too local–to too radical–for mainstream foundations.”
RESIST / 259 Elm Street, Somerville, MA 02144 / (617)623-5110 / www.resistinc.org
“As an Army veteran, I’m so glad there’s an organization like Courage to Resist that really cares about people in the military and brings the whole community together in support of the heroes that follow the call of conscience and resist war…”
